Live Review: Screeching Weasel and The Queers live at Hobart Arts Theatre

Hobart, IN – 30 Mar 2025

Absence has clearly made the heart grow fonder in the case of the triumphant return of Screeching Weasel. 

If you’ve been paying attention at all to the world of Screeching Weasel, Lookout! Records, or even pop punk in general, the buzz was deafening. For the first time in six years, the mighty Screeching Weasel were playing four shows, all in the greater Chicago area. I tried to resist. The first two (Friday and Saturday) shows at Reggies on the southside of Chicago sold out in minutes anyway. Another farther from me in the northern suburbs of McHenry on Thursday took a little longer, but also sold out. Then they added another a little closer to me in Hobart, IN with a twist – The Queers were also on the bill. 

After giving Ben hundreds of dollars for new releases and overpriced vinyl reissues over the last couple of years, I’d sworn to cut him off. Yet there I was, dropping another C-note on a pair of tickets for a Sunday night show in suburban Gary, IN. It was about a two and a half hour drive from my suburban home near Grand Rapids, MI. I brought my older son with me. While he’s not the world’s biggest punk fan, he enjoys people watching and letting dad pay for things. 

Recent California to Detroit transplants Hayley and the Crushers opened all four shows. The female fronted quartet play a mix of pop punk and glam rock, with maybe a touch of riot girl for grit. They were certainly the most talkative group of the night, and added a bit of levity. Hayley’s sparkly space age outfit helped her stand out from the blue jean and black leather jacket crowd, and their cover of “Teenage Lobotomy” helped them connect with the Ramones loving audience. 

Joe Queer and Ben Weasel are long-time collaborators, but The Queers only supported Weasel for the single show. I’ve seen The Queers at least 15 times, and this was definitely a one of a kind set. With Italian guitarist/bassist extraordinaire Ginger Fanculo on loan to Weasel, Joe played guitar and was joined by regular drummer Hoglog, Classic Pat from The Putz on bass, and Ron Mullens from The 66ers on keyboards. The 66ers are Joe’s new band, and a couple other members pitched in on vocals during the set too. 

The set was almost all slower Beach Boys inspired pop songs, a lot of which rarely get played live. If it was my first time seeing The Queers I might have been disappointed, but since I’ve seen them so many times it was refreshing to hear something completely different. “I Want You Around” was the obligatory Ramones cover. Only the last two songs were full punk ragers, but overall it was 40 minutes of good clean fun. 

The Queers setlist: “Don’t Back Down”, “Janelle, Janelle”, “Burger King Queen”, “Definitely”, “Girl About Town”, “I Enjoy Being a Boy”, “Today I Fell In Love”, “Surf Goddess/Daydreaming”, “I Think She’s Starting to Like Me”, “End It All”, “Mrs. Brown You’ve Got an Ugly Daughter”, “I Wanna Be Happy”, “Sidewalk Surfin’ Girl”, “I Want You Around”, “Fuck the World”, “This Place Sucks”. 

Screeching Weasel did not cover a Ramones song, but played a workman-like set worthy of that band’s legacy. There were 29 songs over the course of 75 minutes, with minimal chit chat. All of SW’s eras were represented, but they spent most of their time in the Lookout! sweet spot of Boogada-Brain-Wiggle-Anthem-Enemies. The band seemed to be in good spirits, and they sounded good, although I’m not entirely sure who the band is at this point. Ben may have had to strain to get the high notes a couple times, but the audience was more than happy to help out. 

We were able to catch up with some old friends we were expecting to see, and some others we weren’t.. We talked to people who had flown in from all over the country for a show or two. If I have a complaint, and I really don’t, it’s that The Queers and Weasel didn’t collaborate on a song or two. It could have been a something they both recorded like “Fuck the World”, “Surf Goddess” or “Cindy’s on Methadone”, or “Blitzkreig Bop” for all I care. Oh well, a missed opportunity. 

It had been nearly nine years since I’d seen Weasel, and despite the time passed I enjoyed this show more than the last. The old restored theatre was a great venue, and the fans were giving off great energy. Everybody was friendly, and there was a genuine sense of camaraderie and celebration in the air. There was a fist thrown down front at the very end, but Ben made sure the perpetrator got ejected and started “My Right” over from the beginning. The theatre was not very dance friendly, but a huge circle pit finally broke out during the last two songs. I feel like I can be as cranky as the notoriously grouchy Ben Weasel, but I went home happy. 

Screeching Weasel setlist: “I’m Gonna Strangle You”, “Veronica Hates Me”, “Dingbat”, “Baby Talk”, “Totally”, “Falling Apart”, “Leather Jacket”, “My Favorite Nightmare”, “The Science of Myth”, “What We Hate”, “Guest List”, “Sogans”, “Supermarket Fantasy”, “Back of Your Head”, “Hey Suburbia”, “Ashtray”, “My Brain Hurts”, “The First Day of Summer”, “Second Floor East”, “I Wrote Holden Caulfield”. Encore: “Cindy’s on Methadone”, “Acknowledge”, “Don’t Turn Out the Lights”, “Joanie Loves Johnny”, “Totem Pole”, “99”, “I Can See Clearly”, “My Right”, “Cool Kids”. 

Confessions of a merch whore: I didn’t get much, just the recent reissue of The Queers’ debut LP Grow Up on clear and oxblood wax.